Sometimes the fastest way to improve your bottom line is to cut your expenses. After all, there’s only 2 ways to get rich: make more or desire less.
I try and take a holistic approach to personal finance and address both sides of the equation on this site. Most of the content you’ll find is geared toward making more money, since that has an almost limitless upside, but in this section, you’ll find the posts and podcast episodes related to saving money.
Earlier this year, Bryn and I switched cell phone providers from Verizon to Ting.
Our bill last month was $59 for 2 iPhones, less than half what we were paying at Verizon.
Over the course of the year, we’ll save $804 or more.
(Our average Verizon bill in 2013 was $126.26.)
So what’s Ting?
It’s OK, I’d never heard of them either.
SmartWater is a brand of bottled water produced by the Glaceau company — the same company that makes those colorful VitaminWaters. I was surprised to learn Glaceau is a subsidiary of Coca-Cola. But what makes SmartWater so special? Is it really any different from regular water? Here’s what we know: SmartWater is “vapor distilled” water. … Read more
Southwest Business Select tickets are a huge ripoff. Usually. Don’t buy them without reading this first. Under the new Rapid Rewards program, you will earn free flights much faster by buying Business Select tickets. However, it was a mistake to stop there and assume it was a better deal. Nerd-Alert Option: Skip the math and … Read more
I got a pair of Salomon XA Pro 3D Ultra trail running shoes a few years ago, and they’re super-comfortable. Lately I’ve been putting a ton of miles on them on my treadmill desk, so I was pretty bummed when the laces broke on one of them. The laces are really thin so it makes … Read more
I had a hypothesis that text messaging is a huge cash cow for mobile phone carriers; a high-value product with virtually no variable expense. So I did some homework and found out I was right, and it was even worse than I imagined. Text Message Pricing On Verizon, text message pricing is as follows: $0.20 … Read more
During our recent trip to Montana and Wyoming, I was surprised to find octane 85 and 85.5 gas at the gas stations. I had the false idea that octane ratings had to do with fuel efficiency, fuel “quality”, and or pollutants. I had some homework to do. What is Octane? The octane rating of gasoline … Read more
Satellite radio is an interesting business model. They have extremely high overhead (satellites definitely aren’t cheap), but the marginal cost of additional customers is basically zero. Their satellites are already up there beaming signals down to earth; if the signal hits one receiver or a million, it’s all the same to them. In December, mom … Read more
Yes, I’m that guy who charges his order off the dollar menu. Why? Because with tax it always ends up being $1.09 or some other terrible amount, and what am I going to do with $0.91 in change? All of a sudden the $1 double cheeseburger pretty much cost $2. (Although it is nice, three … Read more
How Restaurant.com Works Restaurant.com sells gift certificates to local restaurants at deep discounts. Their normal price is $10 for a $25 gift certificate, but they often run promotions where you can buy the same $25 gift certificate for just $2 or $3. $25 worth of food for $2! What’s the catch? Each restaurant has their … Read more